ITEXPO, Los Angeles – Frost & Sullivan (News - Alert) indicates the telepresence solutions and video conferencing market is posed for strong growth, with the market expected to reach $4.7 billion by 2014. But while many see great promise for telepresence, others say it’s a very limited opportunity due to the eye-popping price tags that often come with it.

 

Such systems might make sense for a meeting between Cisco Chairman and CEO John Chambers (News - Alert) and President Obama, one gentleman recently quipped, but otherwise it is pretty hard to justify.

 

Comments like that don’t catch Bob McCandless, CEO of videoconferencing system provider BrightCom, off guard.

 

“We hear that all the time,” he said.

 

That’s one of reason BrightCom offers a broad range of telepresence solutions, McCandless said.

 

For those companies that want to experience telepresence without breaking the bank, BrightCom offers the L37 solution under its Lumina Telepresence (News - Alert) line. The six-seat L37 is a completely self-contained telepresence unit businesses and organizations can drop in for $100,000, says McCandless, adding that Cisco (News - Alert) and TANDBERG don’t offer smaller solutions like this.